Permission to reproduce or publish
material in this collection must be obtained in writing from the McLean
County Museum of History.

Alternative Formats:

None.

Other Finding Aids:

None.

Location:

Archives.

Notes:

Photos - People
Augstin

Eckert

Historical Sketch

World War II erupted in September 1939 with the German invasion of Poland
and ended with Japan's surrender in September 1945. The US, still recovering
from the Great Depression, initially remained in isolation as the war
blazed in Western and Eastern Europe and North Africa. The Japanese bombing
of the US naval base at Pearl Harbor in December 1941 catapulted the US
into war against all the Axis powers in Asia, Europe and Africa. Millions
of Americans eventually served in the armed forces during the war.

These are the stories of a few of the surviving U.S. servicemen as captured
by students in the history classes of Dr. Earl Reitan at Illinois State
University (ISU) in Normal, Illinois, in the 1980s. Also included are
the stories of a few European soldiers, plus civilians in wartime US and
Europe. Each paper is based on an in-person interview between the student
and the subject.

Dr. Reitan wrote his 2001 book Riflemen: On the Cutting Edge of World
War II based on his own experiences and those of his fellow riflemen while
serving in the 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division.
It is available in the Museum Library Stacks, call number 940.54 REI 2005.

Scope
and Contents Note

This collection includes
copies of nearly 350 student-written papers.

Lyle Augstin

, 1st Marine Division, 5th
Marine Regiment, 2ndBatallion,
E Company.

Box and Folder Inventory

Please note that a few individuals were interviewed multiple times. Occasional
notes in italics are obtained from the interviewee, their family or other records
(census, enlistment, casualty, phone) in 2010.